I can state with some confidence that I won't be the harbinger of breaking news if I tell you that it is cold in Zurich.

The Lake however, unlike every other bit of exposed water, has not frozen. I read somewhere that it needs temperatures consistently below -10C for 40 days to achieve this. While it is hovering around this figure at the moment, and has been for a few days, if it persists for over a month it will take more than the wholesale freezing of the Zurichsee to cheer me up.

How people in Canada or Russia or wherever survive when the mercury dips to -30C or -40C for prolonged periods is beyond me.

I'll let you investigate that yourselves - what's plain is that it's a big shift from the stout traditional "Stadt Zürich" and "Stadt Rapperswil"

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Taken from roughly the same spot as the previous two photos, but with a telephoto - 300mm - as opposed to 31mm wide angle. The little spit of land sticking out into the lake is the Zurichhorn, part of a nice little lakeside park.

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Similar idea to yesterday's photo. Same time, same place. Different props, different actors.

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This is quite an interesting composition. What's interesting about it is that I've loitered at this spot countless times every week for the past umpteen years, and this is the first time I've spotted it. It's adjacent to the Ganymede statue that I've been boring people with for umpteen years...

It's not as though it was a rare combination of circumstances. This view is always contre-jour, the distant mountains are almost always hazy, there are always people hanging around for convenient silhouettes. As far as I remember, the railings haven't recently rearranged themselves.

Sometimes I wander about with the camera, and it seems like there are no photos - however I just remind myself that something always turns up, even in your own, well-worn backyard.

The lake is pretty cold at the moment - I think this photo has a suitably arctic look to it. And almost a complete absence of the usual teeming wheeling gulls and water fowl.

Sunrise over Lake Zurich. Rather a strange lighting effect and cloud formation, almost like a sandstorm. Published in colour especially for Nathalie at Sydney Daily Snap

Along the lakeside towards Zurichhorn, the parkland is dotted with various interesting objects, more of which anon. We already saw the Tinguely sculpture "Heureka". Close by is this sculpture/fountain/whatever

The ball weighs 1000kg (metric tonne) but is supported effortlessly by water pressure. You can spin it around with two fingers. A nice bit of fun

Another view of the lakeside in the morning. Trees are now fully clad and I like the diversity of leaves and branches

Another photo of the old paddle steamer Stadt Zürich as it comes into the berth at Burkliplatz. This taken a few days ago - now the rains have set in for Pfingsten holiday (Whitsun)

This guy makes these intricately balanced sculptures down by the Zurich lakeside. They are transient of course. The fact that some of them survive for so long is in itself amazing. These ones are quite basic compared with others that I've seen him do

My lifestyle means that I shake hands with the sunrise a lot more often than the sunset. Today's an exception though, so here is a picture of the sun setting over Lake Zurich this evening. A timeless scene.. ooops forgot about the contrails...